ABP Adds 22 Defibrillators

Posted August 26th 2024

There’s no question, minutes matter. Research has shown that speed is of the essence during a cardiac emergency. The chances of survival for an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest are only about 6%. If you can get the pads of a defibrillator onto the patient’s chest within 3 minutes and they are in a shockable rhythm, the chances of survival jump to 74%. This drops by 10% for every minute’s delay in using the machine.

So, it should be comforting to know that the Borough of Avalon reacted so quickly to a request from its beach patrol to better equip them with state-of-the-art defibrillators.

“We have to give credit to the Stone Harbor Beach Patrol,” says Avalon Beach Patrol Chief Matt Wolf. “They had them at every stand and it seemed like a really great idea.”

The ABP was already trained in the use of the two units that were carried in their beach vehicles, but as research has shown, speed is of the essence. With that in mind, conversations began between Wolf and then-Borough Council President Jamie McDermott last year.

Wolf notes that while the beach patrol is most usually associated with ocean or waterside emergencies, “We’re seeing more and more back beach emergencies every year,” he says. Back beach emergencies might occur on beach paths, the soft sand, or even on Avalon’s boardwalk. “They seem to become more frequent each summer.”

So, for the summer of 2024 the Borough added 22 defibrillator units. There’s now a unit at each lifeguard stand on Avalon’s beach – 24 units in all. “Obviously our goal was to increase the odds of survival for a patient in need,” Wolf says.

Borough Administrator Scott Wahl says more than $40,000 was budgeted to acquire the units that are carried in water- and sand-tight Pelican cases to each stand after roll call every morning.

“This has been a transitional summer,” Wolf says. “We put procedures in place for the distribution and storage of each unit.”

And education continues with all patrol members. The primary purpose of the beach patrol has never changed in more than 100 years: Protect the lives of those enjoying Avalon’s beaches. The role, however, continues to evolve and thankfully for those enjoying all of Avalon’s beaches, the lifeguards have even more ability to assist those in need.